First community groups in the Highlands funded through the Get Active Scotland Fund

Community groups and organisations in the Highlands and Glasgow have secured more than £270,000 to boost sport and physical activity opportunities through the Get Active Scotland fund.

Launched in September 2025 with Olympian Megan Keith, Get Active Scotland is a £1.1 million collaboration between the London Marathon Foundation, sportscotland, Glasgow Life and High Life Highland – it’s one of the largest funds focused on increasing participation in physical activity in Scotland.

Six months in, the Fund is already reaching more than 70 community groups to help children, young people and communities experiencing high levels of deprivation or rural isolation to be more active.

Half of adults living in Scotland’s most deprived areas do not meet the recommended physical activity guidelines, and 32 per cent of all children fall short of the child activity guidelines – rising to 41 per cent when school activity is excluded (Scottish Health Survey 2024). Get Active Scotland aims to address these issues by funding projects that encourage people of all ages and abilities to get active, stay active and thrive.

A wide range of activities have been funded – from basketball to boxing, shinty to surfing – to encourage more people to move in the way that’s right for them. In the Highlands, groups funded include Highland Disability Sport, Highland Bears Basketball, Golspie Youth Action Project and Àban Outdoor – an outdoor education charity using the funding for new activities for its outdoor youth groups.

Johannes Petersen, Chief Officer at Àban Outdoor, said: “Children across the Highlands need physical activity now more than ever. While there are some great examples of individual schools offering activities to their pupils, we aim to fill gaps. This fantastic funding will help us to develop new canoeing activities – we can’t wait to get going.”

In Glasgow, projects funded include a parent and child fitness programme (Active Life Club), expanding an inclusive rugby programme (Glasgow Clan Inclusive Rugby Football Club), remote activities for older adults (Weekday Wow Factor) and a community Couch to 5K programme for inactive adults (South Seeds).

Lucy Gillie, General Manager at South Seeds, said: “We’re delighted with the progress of our daytime Couch to 5K – the only daytime programme of its kind that we know of in Glasgow. Now seven weeks in, we have 15 participants, who could not run for more than two minutes when they first started, well on their way to running 5km.”

The Get Active Scotland funding is already helping to make the goals set out in Glasgow Life’s new physical activity strategy a reality. Launched last summer by Glasgow Life and sector partners, Active Glasgow: A Physical Activity and Sport Strategy for Glasgow 2025-2035, aims to make Glasgow a city where everyone thrives and communities grow stronger through the benefits of physical activity and sport.

Get Active Scotland is a two-year funding collaboration, and the 70 projects funded so far are only the beginning. Local clubs and organisations in Glasgow can apply now to the Get Active Glasgow Fund. High Life Highland’s second round of funding closed in February – successful applicants will be notified soon. Further funding rounds for the Get Active Highland Fund will open in the next financial year.

The London Marathon Foundation’s funding in Scotland has been made possible through its events company (London Marathon Events) acquiring Caledonian Concepts Ltd, one of Scotland’s leading providers of mass-participation sporting events, including the Inverness Half Marathon and 5K, taking place on Sunday 8 March 2026.